In a brazen late-night robbery that has sent shockwaves through the region, thieves successfully uprooted and stole an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) in Madhya Pradesh's Katni district. The audacious crime occurred barely metres away from the Madhav Nagar police station in the early hours of Saturday, highlighting the gang's daring modus operandi.
A Meticulous, Movie-Style Heist
The incident unfolded with clockwork precision around 2:30 am on Saturday. According to police reports, a group of approximately half a dozen individuals arrived at the Bank of Maharashtra ATM located near Madhav Nagar Gate in a pickup van. Their first move was to disable surveillance by spraying a black substance on nearby CCTV cameras, effectively blinding them.
They then proceeded to loop thick ropes around the standalone ATM kiosk. Using the power of their vehicle, they uprooted the entire machine within minutes. The heavy ATM was swiftly loaded onto the pickup van before the gang sped away into the darkness. Senior police officials confirmed that the entire operation, from arrival to escape, was completed in a span of just 15 minutes.
Police Response and Investigation
An alert was raised, and police teams reached the crime scene within five minutes of receiving the information. However, by then, the thieves had a significant head start. Katni Superintendent of Police Abhinay Vishwakarma stated that preliminary findings suggest the accused fled towards the neighbouring Jabalpur district with the stolen machine.
Forensic teams were dispatched to gather evidence. Four to five special police teams have been constituted to track down the culprits. Authorities are meticulously scanning footage from all CCTV cameras in Katni and adjoining areas to identify the vehicle and the perpetrators.
Bank officials informed the police that the stolen ATM was loaded with cash amounting to approximately Rs 11 lakh (1.1 million rupees). A district-wide chase has been launched to recover the machine and apprehend the gang.
A Precursor in Jabalpur
This successful theft comes just a day after a similar attempt was thwarted by vigilant citizens in the neighbouring Jabalpur district. In the early hours of Friday, around 2 am, unidentified men attempted to break into an ATM at the Gosalpur bus stand using gas cutters.
Alert local residents noticed the sparks from the cutting equipment and raised an alarm. They began pelting stones at the intruders, forcing them to abandon the attempt and flee in haste, leaving the ATM behind. This failed heist now appears to have been a precursor to the more sophisticated and successful operation carried out in Katni.
The back-to-back incidents have raised serious concerns about the security of ATMs, especially in areas that are seemingly well-protected. The Katni police have expressed confidence in solving the case soon, but the boldness of the crime—executed in the shadow of a police station—has left the local community alarmed. The investigation is ongoing.
